Gamers in the Philippines are making beds in London

While AI can write humanlike essays, machines can still barely walk or pick up a cup because there is no data to help them copy our biomechanical movements.

Parmy Olson

Jun 2, 2023 – 11.46am

Email LinkedIn Twitter Facebook

Subscribe to gift this article

Gift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.

Subscribe now

Already a subscriber?

I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the robots are coming. Tesla has one with opposable thumbs called Optimus, and other start-ups like California-based Figure and Norway’s 1X are building walking machines with torsos and arms that can stack warehouses goods. But to be truly useful in their first years of labour, many of these robots will need to be steered by humans, posing a unique challenge around privacy and marketing for their makers.